Currying Favour: Think Twice Before Putting Kari Patta On The Side Of Your Plate

Ipsita

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2 min read, 01 Jun 2017

Nutrition

Ipsita

2 min read

Currying Favour: Think Twice Before Putting Kari Patta On The Side Of Your Plate

157 Likes

0
Comment

Kari patta, or curry leaves, are so nice, you want to eat it twice! Here’s why you should have some every day, even if you’re not from the south of India.

It is not for no reason that most of our meals in India come with a splash of curry leaves (kari patta). Our ancestors were excellent at tastefully including extremely healthy herbs and spices in our daily diets. The flavourful kari patta is a very good source of fibre, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, folic acid, nicotinic acid, flavonoids, and vitamins A, B, C, and E. Often given as a laxative, these leaves can be used as blood purifiers too. So if you want to keep certain health and beauty issues at bay, start taking these leaves a little more seriously! Some of the health and beauty concerns that this ‘super’ herb helps you fight include:

Anaemia – Loaded with iron and folic acid, these leaves are a superb way to fight and keep anaemia at bay. Iron, as a nutrient, is one of the easiest to pass through your body without proper absorption, hence, anaemia is as much about the intake of iron, as it is about the absorption of iron. That is where folic acid comes into play, as it helps promote the absorption of iron. This makes kari patta a great way to fight anaemia.

Diabetes – Because of its high anti-hyperglycaemic properties, these leaves impact the insulin produced in your body, and help control blood sugar. This makes them a great source to ward off diabetic problems. Also known to have a positive impact on weight loss, kari patta affects many body ailments positively such as diabetes and heart diseases.

Digestion – These leaves are known for their digestive properties because of the way they make your body absorb fat, remove waste, and balance the pitta in your body. Kari patta is also used in ayurveda as a mild laxative. In spite of being a mild laxative, the presence of carbazole alkaloids lend kari patta anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, thereby making it a brilliant herb to heal stomach upset problems.

Cholesterol – The antioxidants in kari patta help control the oxidation of cholesterol that forms LDL (bad cholesterol). This, in turn, helps increase the good cholesterol, HDL, in your body. Thus, kari patta not only helps control your cholesterol, but also helps you stay away from heart diseases.

Liver – The presence of kaempferol provides these leaves with anti-oxidative properties, which protect the liver from oxidative stress. Vitamins A and C, which are also present in these leaves, stimulate your liver to perform more efficiently.

Hair – Kari patta is often known as a natural hair tonic. Enriched with vitamin B-complex and minerals like iodine, zinc, selenium, and iron, these leaves have the property to prevent the premature greying of hair, while also darkening the hair and restoring the melanin pigment. When combined with coconut oil and applied to hair, the combination works wonders.

Eyesight and skin – Vitamins A and E, contained in these leaves, help improve the vision, as well as keep your skin healthy and acne-free.

Covering your body head-to-toe, in and out, I hope these kari pattas find their way into your system and no longer sit on the side of your plate post your meals!

Some things to keep in mind

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